It’s true a cold beer is a common sight on golf courses and nothing is stopping skiers from having an après-slopes tipple, but the province says liquor-law reforms announced Monday will cut red tape for golf courses and ski resorts that want to expand their liquor-licence areas.
Under current laws, the businesses had to apply for a special permit each time they hosted a special event that expanded their licensed area — such as having a pop-up bar on a putting green during a golf tournament, or a beer garden next to a terrain park during a jump competition.
That cost $330 each time, with a maximum of six permits per year.
As of Dec. 9, however, a ski resort or golf course only has to apply and pay the fee once to cover 26 events in one year.
Justice Minister Suzanne Anton said the changes are in response to complaints from businesses about unnecessary bureaucracy surrounding special-event licences.
“It was definitely a source of frustration,” said David Lynn, president and CEO of Canada West Ski Association, citing the cost, tedium and uncertainty associated with applying for a licence for each event. “So this is a big step forward for us.”
Don Sharpe, Mount Washington Alpine Resort’s director of business operations and marketing, said the resort hosts upwards of 40 events during the season, a small handful of which would include a beer garden. “But now we apply for all those right at the beginning of the year … and it gives us ease at the beginning of the winter season,” Sharpe said.
B.C. NDP liquor policy critic David Eby said he has two concerns with Monday’s announcement: loss of revenue and safety.
“Obviously this is a small loss of revenue to government and right now every dollar counts,” he said. “And the second is that skiing can be a dangerous sport, so the government will have to make sure enforcement of minimum standards is in place.”
Anton said a streamlined process doesn’t necessarily mean liquor consumption will rise on ski hills.
“Safety is always a concern and the premise itself, the establishment, everyone needs to have Serving it Right [certification] and it has to be properly monitored,” Anton said. “Our liquor inspectors take care of that across B.C. every day of the year.”
It’s another piece of B.C. liquor-law reform that follows parliamentary secretary John Yap’s 73 recommendations in a Liquor Policy Review released in January.
Other changes include allowing alcohol to be sold in grocery stores as of April 1, allowing bars and restaurants to offer happy-hour specials, removing beer-garden barriers at music festivals and allowing craft beer to be sold at farmers’ markets.
“Generally people are in support of these kinds of initiatives in reforming our liquor laws, but just the approach of our government seems to be every time they have a bad news story, they roll out another announcement,” Eby said.
An additional change that’s underway, Anton said, is making it easier for bars and other primarily liquor venues to host all-ages events such as concerts and dances and eliminating licence-amendment fees.
As of Dec. 9, 21 of the 73 recommendations will have been implemented. The government is aiming to have most of the changes in place by the spring.
